Illegally Dead

by Gregg E. Brickman

  "Doesn't prove anything. Many people stop there."

  "Thorne knew Iglesia. He'd been his doctor. On the morning Iglesia died, he had breakfast in the deli with Chamberlain Thorne."

  "Merda." Tony dropped into his seat.

  "Right." Howard left, walking down the hall at a fast pace. He didn't look back.

  Twenty-three

  "That was Tony." Howard slipped the telephone receiver onto its cradle. He swiveled to face his partner's cubicle.

  Alfonzo raised an eyebrow.

  "Tony said they transferred Hansen to critical care late last night. His fever was very high, and he had blood in his urine. I don't know the significance, but from what Tony said it's serious, something about Hansen's kidneys not working right." Howard straightened his already perfect tie as he talked, never taking his eyes off Alfonzo.

  "Is Hansen going to make it, or are we going to have another victim on our hands?" Alfonzo continued to leaf through a stack of papers on his desk.

  "Whether he makes it or not, we have another victim. Attempted homicide. Tony said Hansen's poison injection site erupted like a volcano. The wound is the worst one he's seen since the Gulf. The tissue is black and dying inside. The doc's afraid the poison and infection will spread into his system, and they'll have to remove part of the intestines."

  "Why would they have to take out his intestines if the poison spread? That doesn't make sense."

  "No, no. If the wound extends any further, it'll go right into the abdomen. They'd have to take out the involved part of the intestines, I think."

  "Holy shit, that's worse than being dead."

  "That's what I was thinking." Howard leaned in his chair and stretched to reach his sports coat that was on a hanger on the back wall of his cubicle. He found the correct pocket and retrieved his leather notebook. After flipping it open to a page summarizing open questions, he continued. "Did you hear anything yesterday from the State Attorney about the downtown lawyers, Gould and Atkins?"

  "Polter said they were closed-mouth. He thinks they didn't consider the possibility of Gould being a murder victim. Now they're caught with their paws in the honey jar."

  "What's Polter going to do about it?"

  "He'll keep pushing the downtown State Attorney's office until someone tells him what's going on. Meanwhile, Judge Kelsey is calling Polter about every day to find out when we are going to make an arrest. Kelsey is convinced Thorne is the one who poisoned Valentine. Kelsey rejects the notion he was anything other than an accidental victim."

  "It may be DiGiovanni and Backus. I wish we could talk with them. They had motive to go after Valentine." Howard felt torn. He trusted Tony's instincts, had always found them to be on target. Still, it was difficult to argue with Alfonzo's logic.

  "But not the rest of the victims. Shit, man, DiGiovanni and Backus aren't in town as far as I can tell. While you were sitting in court, I searched high and low, talked to every known contact. There is no sign anyone has been in their apartment, no one has seen them, they haven't checked in with their parole officers. I say, screw it, let's get a warrant for Thorne and get the SOB Kelsey off our asses."

  "Today's Friday. If we don't have answers by Monday, that's only three days, we'll do it your way." Howard flipped to the calendar page of his notebook and made an entry.

  "Agreed." Alfonzo stood and reached for the coffeepot. The weather was pleasant for a change, cool and dry. He wore a worn Las 15 Letras tee shirt and a loose pair of jeans.

  Howard cringed. "You're not going in public like that, are you?"

  "Like what?"

  "Dressed like that."

  "We're not in court today."

  "Oh, you would have worn a tee shirt without holes if we were going to court?"

  "Probably." Alfonzo made a fist, then flipped his middle finger in Howard's direction.

  Howard grinned. "You still contemplating why Mrs. Valentine wouldn't let you into the main part of the house either time you visited?"

  "No." Alfonzo poured sugar into his cup and onto the plastic tray holding the supplies. "I went by a couple of days ago and asked the lady. I wondered what she was hiding in there."

  "You didn't tell me."

  "I forgot." Alfonzo sat in his chair and put his worn sneakers on the desk. "There's nothing there."

  "Nothing significant?"

  "I mean nothing there. The living room and dining room are empty. They never finished furnishing the house. They lived such separate lives that she had a full apartment on one side and he had his on the other. The only room they shared was the kitchen."

  "The center of the house must have been like a demilitarized zone."

  "I don't believe they cared enough to fight anymore. Once the kid left, they divided the furniture and created separate suites. She's in the process of rearranging things, plans to use the whole house."

  "Maybe it was like the old movie War of the Roses, only in this version she won. Maybe she found a way to have it all." Howard paused for a long moment. "She's keeping that huge house?"

  "I guess. She claims she loves the place and is intending to stay there. Said with her family money and the insurance settlement she is expecting, it won't be a problem."

  "Motive . . . insurance money. That's original." Howard made another entry in his notebook.

  ***

  The ED was quiet for a Friday morning. Tony sat behind his desk and tried to concentrate on past-due paperwork. Thorne would discharge Jennifer later in the day, and he wanted to be sure he was ready to take her home at the end of his shift.

  He had the weekend off and expected life return to some semblance of normal the next week. Nonna planned to take the three kids to Tony's sister for the weekend to give Jennifer a chance to settle in and relax. Jen would object, no doubt, but he'd convince her.

  They had some time before Jen started her chemotherapy and several weeks until her surgical incision healed enough for the radiation treatments to start. Jennifer talked about being sick during the chemo treatments, bringing the subject up at regular intervals. It seemed to Tony that was what she feared most.

  Josh Jackson, the oncologist, was kind enough to send the chemo nurse from his office to talk to Jennifer about the treatment, nurse-to-nurse and woman-to-woman. The nurse assured Jennifer that Jackson always ordered enough medicine to keep his patients comfortable. I hope so, Tony thought, sealing the last report in a pony envelope.

  Tony grabbed the stack of large envelopes, straightened his scrubs, pushed the hair from his forehead, and closed his office door behind him. He dropped the envelopes into the interdepartmental mail and made himself useful. It was early, and he knew the waiting room would soon be full as people realized they couldn't get appointments to see their physicians until next week. Fridays were often full of sick-all-week-but-the-weekend's-coming emergencies.

  "Nick, what's happening?" Tony approached the counter as Nick Messing terminated a telephone call.

  "Not a damn thing, my friend." Nick waited for him to pull over a stool and perch on it before continuing. "That was Jerry Volney. He wants to talk about my group using his billing program."

  "Might be a good idea. Thorne and Prentice seem happy with the service. Corvasce and Villegas are also on line with it."

  Nick tapped his fingers on the desk. "Prentice was in here a couple of days ago pitching it. I wonder if he gets a commission or something."

  "Maybe he has stock in Volney's company?"

  "Could be." Nick slipped his pen into the breast pocket of his white lab coat. "The problem is I never liked Volney when he practiced medicine, and I like him even less now. I agreed to listen to get Prentice off my back."

  "Speaking of Prentice, when's the Rivera case going to trial?"

  "It's scheduled for the end of next week, but it looks like we'll settle out-of-court. I can't believe it."

  "You said Rivera refused to settle? Schmeck was encouraging the Riveras to go for the gold. What happened to change his mind?"

&nbs
p; "Schmeck must be softening, what with all of her colleagues getting knocked off. She started to make settlement noises before the assault on Hansen. Prentice is pushing for a hearing. He claims since he's Thorne's partner, he won't get a fair deal unless he can defend himself in court. Looks like he'll insist on going to court even if I don't."

  "Don't you two share the same malpractice carrier?"

  "Yes, but different counsel."

  "It seems to me Prentice should let his insurance take care of the problem and avoid the lost time of going to court. He has to be busier now that Thorne isn't getting as many referrals."

  "I couldn't agree more." Nick looked down the corridor in the direction of the double doors leading to the waiting room. "There's Volney. Want to sit in?"

  "Why would I want to do that?" Tony knitted his brow and stared at Nick.

  "For your general education, my boy." Nick grinned and stood. He laid a patient chart on the counter.

  "Why not? Let me tell the secretary I'll be in your office."

  A few minutes later, Tony joined the two men in Nick Messing's office. The office itself was a few feet bigger than Tony's, but it had an outer foyer for the group's secretary and an adjacent sleep room and locker room to accommodate the members of the group practice. The modular furnishings were recent acquisitions and made good use of the space.

  "Tony Conte," Nick said, motioning in Volney's direction, "I'd like you to meet Jerry Volney."

  Tony extended a hand. "We've met." Taken aback, he retracted his hand when Volney didn't return the gesture. Obviously, Volney hadn't expected him to join the meeting. "Nick, if you'd rather have this meeting in private, I'll go back to work."

  Volney looked at Tony. "What's your interest?"

  "Tony and I have discussed billing systems. He has a lot of good business sense, and I'd like his opinion. Several of the men have mentioned to him that they were pleased with what you're doing for them." Nick looked Volney in the eye. "Besides, I want him here."

  Tony was curious about Volney's attitude. He dropped into the chair, determined to find out.

  Volney grunted, leaned forward in his chair, and opened his briefcase. He produced a black laptop computer. He powered it up, tapped in a password, and opened a PowerPoint presentation. The first slide, entitled Volney Enterprises: A Changing Company, depicted the original corporate structure and its new partnership arrangement using interconnected pictures with a central large building and several smaller buildings in a loose circle. Various solid and broken lines connected the graphics.

  "Now, Nick . . . ah . . . gentlemen . . ." He stopped, then resumed speaking. "Gentlemen, as you can see by this first slide my company has acquired a new partner."

  "It looks like you're branching out." Nick pointed in the direction of the second name on the slide.

  "And, indeed we are. Originally, we designed our programs to support physician office practices, office-based coding, billing and the like. We completed the programming for hospital-based group practices such as Emergency Medicine and Radiology. We successfully implemented it with the huge Emergency Medicine practice at County. We've even integrated some of the functions with County's own billing system.

  "A few months ago, because of my expertise I'd imagine, we were approached by a software group specializing in billing software for other types of client services. They proposed a merger. We accepted the proposal and formed a partnership of sorts. We've now ventured into a full range of practice management software. We can support legal practices and accounting practices, pretty much any professional service that's run out of an office and bills clients." He flipped to the next page of his presentation.

  "Why are you telling me all this?" Nick asked.

  "For three reasons. First, I'd like to install the program for your emergency group and help you with billing. Second, I want you to see the depth of the company you'll be dealing with. It's not just Jerry Volney. I have a whole crew of expert people." Again, Volney forwarded his slides.

  Tony said, "Dr. Volney, you do a lot of the work yourself. I saw you in Villegas's office fixing the system, and you're here doing sales. You're everywhere. Are you sure you have enough staff to take on another big practice?" He pulled his chair closer to Nick's desk.

  For a moment, there was silence. Volney picked a piece of lint from the sleeve of his Brooks Brothers suit, then continued. "As I was saying, we have a whole crew of experts. Third, I want you to consider Volney Enterprises as an investment opportunity. We are in the midst of a private stock offering, first to our current clients, next to prospectives."

  Nick raised an eyebrow. "Why would I want to invest in a software company right before I retire? Sounds risky to me." He pointed to the latest slide Volney had displayed. "I don't see any guarantee."

  "Several of your colleagues have invested—Prentice, Villegas, and Olson, to name a few. Talk to them. We are rewarding them handsomely."

  "Your company is showing a profit?" Tony asked.

  "Certainly," Volney said without looking at Tony. "That's why we can expand and do as much as we are. We offer a full range of practice support services." He flipped to the next frame. "Let me show you in detail what we can do for you."

  He pointed to a small graph in the corner of the page. "We've added a collections service that has improved collections in client offices by as much as fifty percent, and that's only in the three months the department has been up and running."

  "To what do you attribute your success?" Nick asked, appearing interested.

  "For one thing, the format of our bills is very clear. Patients can understand the charges. They can pay with the confidence they know what they're paying. Also, the third party billing component has several cross checks and references built in. The accuracy of the billing is increased and thus the rate of collections is improved."

  As Volney presented the details of his program and Nick listened, Tony's mind began to wander. He stood up. "I'm sorry to leave you gentlemen, but I can hear the activity level has picked up in the ED." He extended his hand to Volney who reciprocated this time. Tony noticed, despite Volney's paunchy appearance, his handshake was firm, aggressive. "Thanks for the information."

  Tony stopped by his own office and placed a call to Howard, leaving a message on his cell phone's voice mail. Tony wanted information about the two attorneys who died downtown. Was there an investigation? What had the result of the investigation been? Were there suspects in Atkins' sexual battery and murder? Did Gould have a heart attack, or did it just look that way? What were the details of the case they were trying at the time?

  Howard didn't return the call, and soon Tony was on his way upstairs to collect Jennifer and take her home.

  ***

  Tony guided Jennifer into a swarm of activity. Three kids, Elena, and Bella met them at the door of the house. They had waited in front of the window, looking for the van.

  Tony, concerned the exuberant children or the excited pup might overwhelm Jennifer, dropped to a squatting position and corralled them with his long, strong arms. Elena greeted her daughter-in-law first, then helped as Tony allowed each child, in turn, to hug Mommy.

  Jennifer beamed, showering kisses on her kids. Then she made her way to a nearby chair and greeted Bella with open arms. It wasn't long before Tony sent the children and Nonna on their way and led an exhausted Jennifer to her bed. Bella followed at their heals.

  "Bella won't leave your side for a while."

  "Good. She's excellent company. Besides, I need to tolerate her germs too, so I don't get infections when chemo starts." Jennifer rubbed the pup's ears, then signaled to her to lie next to the bed. "Look, she must know. She's minding me. That's a switch."

  "Sweetheart, I'd say it's time she starts to mind someone besides me."

  "Oh, Tony, don't be so hard on her. She's been your dog since the day she came home."

  Tony stepped over Bella and bent to kiss Jennifer on the forehead. "Rest. Ma left us some soup for dinner. I'll heat it
up, and we'll eat a little when you're ready."

  "That's not enough for you."

  "Not to worry, Baby, I won't starve." He patted his flat belly. "I've got a few pounds to spare."

  Jennifer closed her eyes. Tony stood in the doorway for the longest time, staring at his sleeping wife, glad to have her home. The ringing telephone interrupted his contentment. He sprinted to the kitchen and caught it before the second ring."

  "Tony, this is Howard. Sorry, I know you called me a long time ago."

  "Howard, that's okay. Listen, I have some questions."

  Twenty-four

  When Tony emerged from the staff lounge after Monday morning's change-of-shift report, he wasn't surprised to find Howard waiting in the corridor. Howard had left him alone for the weekend.

  "What's up?" Tony said, looking around the burgeoning ED. There were patients everywhere. And to make matters worse, he was late for work—again. By the time he settled Jennifer for the day and sent the kids to their respective schools—it spoke for itself.

  "You look busy."

  "Listen, pal, this place is hopping."

  "How's Hansen doing?"

  "I haven't had time to check."

  "It's important. I need to know."

  "Why?" Tony tapped his foot and kept his eyes on the ambulance entrance.

  "It's confidential."

  "I know how to keep my mouth shut," Tony interrupted.

  "I was just saying."

  "Saying what? Get on with it." He saw Unit Nine backing into position. Rescue would wheel the cardiac arrest patient he expected into the major event room in less than sixty seconds. "I've got to go. I'll check on Hansen when I can and call you." Tony hurried down the hall without looking back.